Will it be very hard to remove old tub and replace with 2 piece shower stall?

Question

My husband is thinking he will have to go under the house to chg. out plumbing. I do not want him going under house, I do not think his health at 64 yrs. is good enough to be going under house.

Answer 1

To be honest, there are some 64 year olds that can handle this better than 24 year olds. It is all relative but use your judgment. I suspect by 'under' you are speaking crawlspace. Their heights vary quite a bit too so make that part of your decision if it is needed. It is also very likely that it can be done from the bathroom "IF" you are planning to change your wall covering out as well.

As far as removing the tub, if it is cast iron ...just say no. Most tubs are 5' in length and if it is cast, there is some serious weight to it. If you have concerns about his being under the house, this would probably be well beyond his scope.

If it is steel or some vinyl composite, he can probably handle it with a good friend.... and perhaps a pizza.

Now I would like to offer you an alternate consideration on your plumbing. If you are happy with the location of your plumbing and you can live with updated or newer looking knobs, you have a much better option. The companies that make the plumbing fixtures make kits called either 'trim kits' or 're-trim' kits. In them, they contain new valves (with gaskets) as well as knobs. There is no cutting or soldering to deal with. The old hardware unscrews from the pipes inside the wall.

The only trick with the kits is to identify the manufacturer and model. I would suggest you consider a Saturday task of shutting off the water, removing the knob cover, and unscrewing the valve. Take the vale to a plumbing supply store and they can identify what you have and get you what you need.

Answer 2

I think that for the removal and some of the post-plumbing work he ought to see if he can hire someone to help him with the heavy work of the job. For example if the tub is cast iron you get it out by hitting it very hard with a heavy sledge hammer. Your husband can put plastic over the area around the tub and can call up to get a dumpster. But the actual whacking of the tub ought to go to some beefy guy that he hires for a few hours to smash the tub and bring the pieces out to the dumpster. Similarly if it is steel he can prep things for some beefy guy to use a reciprocating saw to cut it into manageable chunks and toss it out. After the tub is out he can have some beefy guy chop out the parts of the wall (and remove tile) as needed to access the plumbing connections. He can do the plumbing itself if he has the skills but again the heavy parts of getting the tub into place and putting up the cement board around the new tub should be a guy he hires.

So the approach is that he does all the smart skilled work and hires someone for the heavy effort that could cause a heart attack.

Answer 3

depending on how your plumbing is now, removing a older tub depending on whether it is a steel tub or a cast iron one can be quite challenging, and it is possible to remove the tub and install a 2 piece stall if he has some strong helper, and if he has access from behind the old tub to undo te plumbing from the existing tub drain and valve, it would be advisable to enlist the help of a experienced plumber or someone with plumbing knowledge.I am a retired master plumber and this can be quite the job depending on the set up. good luck Don Goss

Answer 4

At 64, you should be getting the job done by someone else. By the way plumbing hookups are designed to do from above. So obviously, your husband doesn't know how to do the work either.

Answer 5

It not to hard of a job. But it helps to have experience on your side. I would advise him to get a little help from someone.Maybe a neighbor.